World's oldest person turns 175 in Venezuela

By Aleksander Boyd

London 30.04.06 | According to data contained in Venezuela's electoral roll, Josefa Molina Lantz, ID 4.256.486, will turn 175 years today, smashing all previously reported records. The venerable lady, born 30 of April 1831, presumably native of Barinas as president Hugo Chavez, whose last contribution towards her pension was made on 19th of July 1980 when she was 149 years old, also makes her the world's oldest registered worker. In sum two world records that will surely make Chavez's XXI century socialist regime proud.

But this supernatural longevity is not exclusive of Ms Lanz. In the month of April 2006 the following Venezuelans celebrated their more-than-a-century birthdays: Pablo Sebastian Rios Hernandez turned 147 only a couple of days ago; Isabel Varela Buceta turned 146 and so did Pedro Alfonso Chitu Chaumes; Maria Gladys del Carmen Moreno de Salas celebrated her 136 birthday; Jose Antonio Sandoval Barrientos his 134th; the list is rather long, perhaps the United Nations Development Programme would be interested in conducting research in Venezuela to determine the causes of such phenomenal longevity amongst its people, not least considering that these people seem to be very active in spite of their age.